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Competitive Fifa 17 matches are to be shown live on British television for the first time after BT Sport was awarded the rights to the EA Fifa Majors.

The broadcaster announced it would air the remaining four majors in the Fifa Ultimate Team Championship Series in April and May in an exclusive deal with Electronic Arts.

Simon Green, head of BT Sport, said: “This is yet another example of live innovation from BT Sport. Competitive interactive football gaming is a rapidly growing industry and I’m delighted that BT Sport is now able to showcase it for the first time ever in the UK.”

Todd Sitrin, senior vice president and general manager of the Competitive Gaming Division, EA, said: “There’s a profound opportunity for competitive gaming to achieve mainstream success and the key to accomplishing this is accessibility.

“We’re thrilled to be partnering with BT Sport to make our exciting competitions for EA Sports Fifa, the most popular video game in the UK, available across the nation as we move the industry forward.”

BT Sport will be expanding their repertoire to cover computer gamesCredit:
Rex Features

Competitors in the Ultimate Team Championship take part on both Xbox One and PlayStation4 consoles, with £130,000 prize money on offer for winner of this year’s series and £65,000 for the runner-up.

The remaining for EA Fifa Majors start on April 8 with the North American regional final in Vancouver, followed by the Asia-Pacific regional final in Singapore on April 22, the European regional final in Madrid on May 6 and the Fifa 17 Ultimate Team Championship final in Berlin on May 20-21.

Richard Scudamore says gaming is a threat to keeping young people engaged in sportCredit:
PA

Competitive gaming has attracted increasingly large viewing figures online in recent years, while many tournaments around the world also now take place in sold-out arenas.